Hello.

I have a LHD FD3S and I am running Koni Yellows with stock shocks. It so happens that my car is lower by 1cm (0.4 inch) on the driver side both front and rear (when no one is sitting in it). Curiously when I sit on the passenger side it all equals out (I wonder if it has to do with fact that the car was JDM designed).

Anyways, that bugs me quite a bit so I would like to rectify this. I also have some Eibach springs I want to put on and I am wondering if there is a way where by adjusting the spring perch height on the Konis the Konis & Eibach combo would be such that the car will be well balanced between LH side and RH side.

I guess I could just go ahead and try it but as I have very little time I was hoping I could get some feedback from people who are using the same suspension setting than me.


Thanks in advance.

Joel

 

Its probably one of two things:

1. the upper shock mounts. Odd ride height differences of that nature are usually worn upper shock bushings.

2. the previous owner/installer may have installed the spring mounts incorrectly. Take a critical look at them comparing them side to side. Many people screw up installing them.

 

Do you have Koni yellows or stock shocks or is it like a mix of both? What springs are on it right now?

Some shocks will actually make the car sit higher when the temperature is hot vs cold. A buddy of mine with a Miata on Koni yellows took measurements and the ride height increased by 2 inches when it was hot. He had the shocks charged with higher pressure gas however because he was trying to compete in the stock class of SCCA autocross. It allows you to change shocks, not springs, so he was compensating for it by tuning the shocks to further decrease roll resistance. I guess it's possible that some of the gas might have leaked out on one of your shocks and so that side sits lower. Another possibility is that the springs are sagging. This is common with some aftermarket springs especially, but not unheard of with OE springs. The other suggestions are good here too. It sounds like gracer7-rx7 knows the most common reason. So maybe try his idea first and if it doesn't fix it you could look at other things.

 

Thanks for your feedback Gracer and Godsquadmandrake, I actually have the stock shocks and Koni yellows all around.

The ride height difference was the same before when I had stock shocks and stock springs actually. When changing the stock shocks to the Konis I measured the springs and they were the same all around.

I'll take a closer look at the spring mount next time but it's be weird that something was wrong on the same side front and rear.

Anyways thanks for your feedback.

Maybe I'll be able to correct this with the perch position on the Konis.

 

I have the same problem with my car, however it is only higher at the rear passenger side. I ordered new shock rubber, the top hats and the spring beds. It was around $360. Hopefully this will solve the problem. I can imagine 18 year old rubber wearing out so we'll see. I had the problem with stock springs and also after I installed Eibach springs.

 

I had the same issue in my last FD. In my case ended up being the sway bar mounts. One of the was bent.

 

Which mount was bent? I understand the fronts are a little weak but can the rear mount get bent?

 

"I actually have the stock shocks and Koni yellows all around."

I assume you mean stock springs with Koni yellow shocks. But, oddly enough I have the same issue on my mazdaspeed after installing H&R springs with Koni yellows. I have spoke with people from H&R and Koni, and they both essentially said that it is not unusual and they have never seen a car sit perfectly level after changing to aftermarket spring/shock combo.

It was not the answer I wanted, but I have been living with it. Soon I am going to remove the front suspension and replace the strut mounts (do to a noise issue). If it helps, I'll report.

 

I am waiting for my Konis to come in,I believe they are back-ordered. As soon as I can get the car back together, I will report back. New shocks, new lower and upper spring rubber will hopefully fix the problem.

 

Anyone has any updates? I just put on Koni yellows w HR springs and now my front driver side sits half inch lower than right side but rear is even.

I peeked in from the gap on top of the front wheel and realized that on front left, the top two turns of the spring are touching tightly compares to the right side there is a little less than quarter inch space.

I suspect is worn top hats but not sure.

I also experience clunky sound at very low speed from the rear. Sounds like its from the top mount but not sure. Anyone has experienced this?

 

Yes,
I installed the Eibach Pro-Kit, Koni shocks and all new OEM rubber pieces for the shock assemblies. I can't remember the exact part names but basically the top hats with 3 studs and bottom rubber pad.

Car is level now. I have a feeling it was mostly the old rubber pieces that were causing it to be out of level. The shocks don't support the car and I don't believe the springs would wear out and sag.

 

What was the new lower and upper spring rubber you mentioned ? I thought the rubber piece is attached to the top hats and i don't see any lower rubber. Also what's the spring seats ? I am trying to order everything I need so I don't have to tear my suspension apart more than twice haha
Thanks for the help.
Does it matter if which side of the spring is top which is bottom? I didn't check that when I put them on.

 

The spring bears against rubber pieces. On the bottom it's just a roughly 2mm piece that is shaped like the spring rest on the shock. The top is a thicker piece that is part of a metal bracket with three studs that mount the shock assembly to the car. These pieces need to be replaces. I would not do this work without the Factory Service Manual. You can download it somewhere on this site. It's very helpful if you want to do it correctly.

 

Thanks adamrs. The top and bottom piece do stick together when you install, right? that may be why I only remember there is only one big rubber piece that's called the top hat with three studs.

What about the springs? Do they have a vertical orientation? I don't think I paid attention to which side of the spring should face up so I may have installed some upside down if that matters.